HOMESTEAD, Fla. — Martin Truex Jr. started Sunday’s race as the oddball, the lone driver among the final four that didn’t have a Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series title on his résumé.

That all changed on Sunday, however, as Truex won the Ford EcoBoost 400 in his No. 78 Toyota at Homestead-Miami Speedway, capping a dominant season by the 37-year-old New Jersey native. The victory is his eighth on the season and fourth of the postseason.

Truex outdueled Kyle Busch down the stretch as he never allowed Busch to pass him. Busch finished second, while Kyle Larson was third and Kevin Harvick fourth. The other championship finalist, Brad Keselowski finished seventh.

"I knew we had to dig deeper than we ever had to today," Truex said. "I just found a way, found a lane I could use."

The title is not only Truex’s first, but also the first Cup title for Colorado-based Furniture Row Racing — the only full-time Cup team not based in North Carolina. Not bad for a driver who only a few years ago didn’t know if he had a future in the series.

Truex was nearly left without a ride when Michael Waltrip Racing folded its racing operations after the 2013 season, a decision that was announced with just a handful of weeks left to race that year and after a scandal involving then-teammate Clint Bowyer at the regular-season finale at Richmond Raceway that cost Truex his spot in the playoffs and his sponsor.

"I was a wreck thinking about all the tough days, the bad days, the times where I thought my career was over with, the times when I didn't think anyone believed in me," Truex said. "But the guys, the people who mattered did, my fans, my family, and then when I got with this team. They're unbelievable, and they resurrected my career and made me a champion."

Truex’s season, while spectacular on the track, wasn’t without misfortune off it.

His longtime girlfriend, Sherry Pollex, is battling stage III ovarian cancer, the second time she's undergone treatment for the disease. Truex and Pollex embraced for a long time after the race ended.

"Everybody is battling something, everybody is fighting something in their life, not just cancer but any kind of struggle that they're going through in their life," Pollex said. "We always say if you can fight a struggle with a positive attitude and just have a smile on your face and find the good and the silver lining in everything, in the end you'll come out and karma will pay you back and good things will happen to you."

Team owner Barney Visser had a heart attack, underwent bypass surgery and was unable to attend Sunday’s race. Jim Watson, a Furniture Row Racing crew member, died after a heart attack last month at 55.

"This means the world," Truex said. "Barney Visser, 11 years of working towards this goal. He couldn't be here tonight. We're thinking of him. Definitely wish he could be here. I know he's probably about as much in shock as I am."

The title comes in Truex's 12th full-time season in Cup, a series that has been forced to deal with the departures of veterans, including the sport’s most popular driver, Dale Earnhardt Jr. His race Sunday was his last as a full-time Cup driver.

Former champion Matt Kenseth announced earlier this month that he wouldn’t return next season and Danica Patrick will run one more NASCAR race — the season-opening Daytona 500 — before concluding her career at the Indianapolis 500 in May.

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Martin Truex Jr, born June 29, 1980 in Trenton, N.J., hails from a racing family. His younger brother Ryan currently races in Sprint Cup, and his father Martin Truex Sr., uncle Barney and cousin Curtis Truex Jr. are former racers at various lower levels. Peter Casey, USA TODAY Sports

Martin Truex Jr. (78) celebrates winning the NASCAR Cup Series championship with a win in the Ford EcoBoost 400 at Homestead-Miami Speedway. The victory was his eighth of the season. Jasen Vinlove, USA TODAY Sports

Martin Truex Jr. (78) celebrates after winning the 2017 Hollywood Casino 400 at Kansas Speedway. The win was Truex's second on the season at Kansas, third win in the playoffs and seventh win overall. Denny Medley, USA TODAY Sports

Martin Truex Jr. and his crew, which performed nearly flawlessly during the Bank of America 500 on Oct. 8, 2017, celebrate his win at Charlotte Motor Speedway to kick off the second round of the playoffs. The win was his sixth of the year. Jim Dedmon, USA TODAY Sports

Martin Truex Jr. does a victory burnout after leading 392 of 400 laps -- and 588 miles -- in winning the 2016 Coca-Cola 600. Truex broke Jim Paschal’s 1967 record for the most laps led in the 600 (335). Jim Dedmon, USA TODAY Sports

With a third-place finish at Michigan International Speedway on June 14, 2015, Martin Truex Jr. became the first driver since Richard Petty in 1969 to record 14 top-10 finishes in the first 15 races of a season. Aaron Doster, USA TODAY Sports

Martin Truex Jr. walks out with his team before the 2014 Sprint All-Star race at Charlotte Motor Speedway. Truex qualified for the race with his victory at Sonoma Raceway the previous year. Sam Sharpe, USA TODAY Sports